NORTHRIDGE, Calif. – The UC Santa Barbara Men's Basketball team (10-6) are hitting the road as they get ready to take on one of the hottest teams in The Big West in the CSUN Matadors. Then, the Gauchos will have a quick turnaround as they head home to The Thunderdome to take on the Cal State Fullerton Titans on Spectrum Sports.
LAST TIME OUT
The Gauchos appeared on national television for the third time this season as they took on Long Beach State. UC Santa Barbara brought the momentum from their overtime win against the Roadrunners into Saturday night as they were ready to battle against one of the best teams in the conference. Although the Gauchos were down at the half, they came back to win this game against the Beach with a score of 86-75.
MAINTAINING THE MATADORS
CSUN has had a phenomenal start to the season. They are 4-1 in Big West play, only dropping a game on the road to UC Davis, while going 13-4 overall. They have beaten strong teams like UCLA, Montana State, Idaho and Chicago State along the way.
The Matadors rank highly in the NCAA in multiple stat categories. They are currently seventh in the country in rebounds per game, averaging 42.5, while sitting in ninth in rebound margin and 11th in defensive rebounds per game. They are also 15th in the NCAA in fastbreak points, racking up 16 a game.
Senior guard De'Sean Allen-Eikens leads the offense for the Matadors this season. He currently has the most points on the team with 298, which comes out to 18.6 points per game.
Keonte Jones is a big player for CSUN as he is third on the team in points, averaging 12.8 per game, while he leads the team in rebounds with 7.0 per game and steals with 36. He also second on the team in assists with 42.
TAMING THE TITANS
Cal State Fullerton is currently on a three-game losing streak heading into their contest against UC Davis. They have only secured one win so far in Big West play at Hawai'i in overtime.
Junior guard Max Jones is a huge piece of the offense for the Titans. He currently leads the team and is sixth in The Big West in scoring, averaging 16.6 points per game. He is also a great defensive player for the Titans as he leads the team in steals with 33.
Senior guard DJ Brewton is close behind Jones in scoring as he is averaging 14.7 points per game. Not only that, but the Alcorn State transfer leads the team in assists with 42 and is the only player to start all 17 games for the Titans.
WHEREABOUTS
The first game of the week will take place at the Premier America Credit Union Arena on the campus of CSUN this Thursday, Jan. 18. Tip-off will be at 7 p.m. with a live stream available through ESPN+. For Saturday's game, the Gauchos will return to The Thunderdome for this Big West contest against the Titans. Tip-off will be at 1 p.m. with the game being viewed on Spectrum Sports. For those who do not have that provider, the game can still be streamed through ESPN+.
